When people think of an estate plan, many first think of a Last Will and Testament, or Will. The Will is truly the hallmark document of any estate plan. This is a document that allows a testator (or, a person who has created a Will), to designate beneficiaries who will inherit property such as cash, real estate, personal property, and other assets such as bank and brokerage accounts, from their estate. ...
The law provides many different methods of protecting your valuable assets. Some of the most common examples include the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”)-qualified retirement plans established by an employer, including 401Ks, deferred compensation plans, and plans for profit sharing. ...
A special needs or supplemental needs trust (SNT) receives and holds assets for the exclusive benefit of a person who is disabled. The key feature of the SNT is that it is not considered a reachable or countable asset of the disabled beneficiary for the purposes of qualifying for means-tested government programs. Specifically, a SNT does not jeopardize its beneficiary’s eligibility to receive public benefits like Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or Medicaid....
This week, Aaron Katsman of Lighthouse Capital and Ariel S. Rosenzveig, Esq. discuss the inheritance process for Americans living abroad with investments in the US....
If you own property along with someone else, there may be a "right of survivorship," where the surviving owner automatically takes ownership of the entire property when the other owner dies, by operation of law....